Ten Dannys Too Many
by LittleMissChess
Summary: Jack Fenton improved the Ghost Catcher... without telling Danny. Now Danny's split up in more than just two. Will he be able to pull himself back together? Or will a handful of Phantoms run amok in Amity, each with less than half a brain? Sam and Tucker may just have to save the hero this time.
1. Prologue

******'Ello, everybody of Fanfiction dot net. I'm LittleMissChess, I'm a DP nerd, and this is my first fanfic. Well, that's a lie; this would be the first one I've posted. But, nonetheless... Enjoy!**

******Disclaimer: Cool! My first disclaimer. I do not own Danny Phantom. Only Butch Hartman and Nickelodeon have such an honor.**

* * *

Deep within the Fenton household, buried underground, lay the soundproof walls and floor of the family's basement. The Fenton adult's, Jack and Maddie, had transformed the bleak concrete settlement into a tech-filled ghost research lab over the years. Faded explosion marks from failed inventions covered the walls, as well as small amounts of ectoplasm that had left glowing green traces behind.

Jack Fenton, the man of the household, kneeled over an invention in said lab with a blowtorch and wire-cutters in hand. He was currently attempting to improve on an already completed device. This device had the ability to separate humans and objects from ghostly influence. Standing tall above his haunched body was what could only be described as a dream-catcher of sorts; a large, round hula-hoop of metal, containing an intricate spiderweb design of glowing strands of pure ecto-energy; the whole thing balancing atop a thin metal pipe.

Snipping one final wire, sealing a panel over its inner mainframe, Jack stood up to survey his work. The Ghost Catcher outwardly appeared the same as it had before- but the inner mechanism was completely changed. If it now worked as Jack had intended, the new-and-improved Ghost Catcher 2.0 would not only split any and all forms of ectoplasmic energy from real-world items. It would also split the ghost itself into numerous, weaker versions of itself.

"Only one way to find out." Jack said aloud as he walked over to a lab table. On the desk, sealed inside a glass cube, sat an annoyed-looking formless green blob. The green entity was about the size of an apple. It growled slightly when Jack picked up the box, but otherwise ignored him. Jack walked back to the Ghost Catcher.

"Alright, ghosty," he grinned, "Time to help me with a little experiment." He tossed the box into the net.

A luminescent glow surrounded the invention for a brief moment as the container passed through; then both ghost and glass clattered onto the floor.

At first, nothing happened. Jack's proud smile faltered for a moment, then fell completely when he saw the ghost was still in one piece- albeit outside the container.

"Darn... I really thought that would work..." he moaned, shoulders lowering, clearly upset.

Suddenly, the green glob sputtered and bubbled. Jack's head shot up at the sound. The green ghost glob screeched a quick, high-pitched shriek. It began stretching into odd contortions before making a final 'pop'.

Jack Fenton smiled at his success: There was not one, not two, but _ten _of them: tiny, ant-sized, jelly-like blobs on the floor. They scuttled about aimlessly at first. After a few moments, Jack gathered them up back into the glass cube. The ghost- or, now ghosts- were too confused and disoriented to protest.

He placed them back onto the same lab table as before. Giddy with excitement, Jack stumbled up the stairs to tell Maddie of his success.

Unknowingly to him, the separate blobs each squirmed in, oddly enough, unique ways compared to each other: one was intensely angry, another scared and confused, and yet another looked rather tired with it's eyes half-lidded.

The glob-ghosts continued to squirm inside the box, forgotten overnight.

* * *

**And... the prologue is done! Sorry if it was short, I'll post more up soon. Please R&R, I'd like to know where I can improve.  
Oh, and happy Thanksgiving in advance to everybody!**

**-Chess**


	2. Separation

**I finished chapter one sooner than expected, so y'all get a treat :)**

**And so no one sues me, the disclaimer in the previous chapter applies to the whole fanfic.**

* * *

"The Box Ghost never learns, does he?"

It was a late Saturday morning in the Fenton household. Danny was standing with his friends, Sam Manson and Tucker Foley, in the lab basement. Jazz was currently in the library working on a psychology project; Jack and Maddie were out 'patrolling', which involved a pointless search for Danny Phantom. So, the gang had the house to themselves.

Danny took the Fenton Thermos and emptied this morning's catch into the Fenton Portal: one very annoying cardboard-obsessed ghost.

He turned around to look at his friends. "Alright, guys. You ready to have a super fun weekend of awesome?"

Tucker groaned. "Danny, please, don't ever say 'super' and 'fun' in the same sentence. Especially when talking about the weekend!"

"What? Why not?"

"C'mon, Danny." Tucker said, "Don't tell me you don't remember the last time you decided to have a weekend of fun. You split yourself into Super Danny and Fun Danny! Which, looking back on it, was hilarious, but-"

"Tucker!" Sam yelled. "It was not fun. It was a disaster!"

He smiled smugly. "Aw, Sam, you're only saying that because Super Danny tried to dress you up in bright, primary colors!"

Sam huffed, arms crossed. "Yes, that is exactly why." She snorted and turned towards her other friend. "Seriously, Danny, how could you expect me to wear anything colorful?"

Danny looked up alarmed. "Hey, that wasn't all of me! Just half of me thought that! It was just... you know, my hero complex acting up."

Tucker laughed. "Yeah, blame it on the ghost side..."

Sam rolled her eyes. "No, it was your hero complex going overboard." She smirked. "But, well, you know... it _was_ pretty funny."

Danny scoffed. "Yeah, sure it was. I know one thing for sure, though: I'm never going through _that_ again." Being both literal and metaphorical, he pointed at the invention responsible for the fiasco: the Ghost Catcher.

"What? How come?" Tucker asked with genuine curiosity.

"Simple." Danny replied, "Too weird. It was like being two different people... only I was sort of aware of what both of me was doing. I was still separate and my halves did their own thing... Wow, that's confusing just to explain." he chuckled. "Then there was the dizziness that caught up with me eventually. Let me tell yo-"

"I AM THE BOX GHOST!"

The trio turned at the sound. Behind them lay a swirling green cloud of ectoplasm that represented the Ghost Portal. And floating next to it was the Box Ghost. Who was definitely supposed to be _in_ the Ghost Zone.

Danny sighed in exasperation. "Oh, come on! I just put you in! How do you keep getting out?"

"You're cylindrical container cannot contain me," the blue ghost bellowed, "No matter _how_ irritatingly smooth-sided it may be!"

Danny let a ring of light pass over his midsection. It split in two- one went up his body and the other traveled down to his sneakers. It left behind a snowy-haired, green eyed ghost boy with an irritated scowl on his face.

Danny flew up to the overall clad ghost. "Did you just make a rhyme? Here, let me try:" Danny got up in front of the specter's face. "Roses are red," He threw his fist at the Box Ghost's nose. "Violets are blue." He delivered a kick. "You'll wish you stayed in the Ghost Zone," Danny readied an ecto blast. "When I'm through with you!"

He released the blast. Boxy, somehow _not_ as stupid as he looks, dodged it. He then levitated some boxes of lab equipment.

"Hey! That could've hit me, you know!" he shouted in a nasally voice.

Danny glared. "That's what I was aiming for!"

The Box Ghost released his boxes, which flew towards Danny at his command. Danny sidestepped (or side-flew?) the cardboard containers. He looked behind him as they landed on the floor with a 'thump'.

Danny Phantom turned around to face his opponent. "Ha! That the best you can- oof!"

The Box Ghost managed to sneak by one cube of cardboard while the half-ghost's head was turned. It sent Danny flying back a couple feet, sending him-

Through the Ghost Catcher.

A flash of light generated around the invention as Danny passed through it. A moment later, both Danny Phantom and Fenton fell on the floor of the lab. The two groaned and clutched their heads.

The Box Ghost grinned stupidly. "Woah... Cool! How did I do that..? Er, I mean, um... Yeah! That was supposed to happen! That is the wrath you must suffer for messing with... THE BO-"

A blue beam shot from a Fenton Thermos and captured Boxy. "Man, I thought he'd never shut up!" Sam said, capping the lid.

Tucker turned to human Danny. "Hey, dude, you okay?" he lent a hand.

"Yeah... yeah, I think so." Danny groaned.

Suddenly, Danny Phantom started to squirm and writhe on the floor.

"Danny!" Tucker and Sam yelled simultaneously. Danny just gaped at his alter-ego.

Phantom made odd grunting and gasping noises. Sam, Tucker, and Danny could only watch in silent horror as he was forced into back-breaking contortions, until-

POP!

The trio flinched at the sound. Opening their eyes a little wider, then _a lot_ wider, they saw-

"Oh. Oh, this is bad..." Sam breathed.

Sprawled across the floor, each seemingly unconscious, sat nearly a dozen Danny Phantoms.

Tucker, hardly daring to break his gaze, spoke, "That... that didn't happen the last time!"

Fenton cautiously approached the nearest Phantom on the floor. He leaned over. "Err... hello?" Danny asked.

That Phantom's eyes shot open at the voice. His gaze trailed down to his gloved hands, then to the ghosts behind him, before looking up at the human Danny.

Danny smiled awkwardly. "Um... hi."

"SUFFERIN' SPOOKS!" Phantom bellowed; the trio fell back in surprise.

"Free at last!" he pumped his fists in the air. "Er... again!" Phantom turned to look around the lab. "Hey! Where do you keep the bedsheets?"

"Shh! Not so loud!" Sam hissed, "You're gonna wake those other-"

_"Duuuuudes!"_

"-Phantoms."

This particular Phantom, much like the first, stood up and looked around. "Like, where's the party at?" he asked.

Danny furrowed his brow in irritation. "Would you quiet down? There is no party!" he looked at the first Phantom. "Or any bedsheets!"

The rest of the ghosts started to stir behind them. They looked around the room, at themselves, and at each other. One sat up straight, stretched, and yawned. "I- *yawn* is it morning already?" he asked groggily.

A copy on the floor in a fetal position whimpered, "Wh-where are we?"

"What's going on here?" another narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "What am I doing in this cruddy lab? And why is it full of a bunch of me's?"

"No it's not, you guys look like me!" One to the left countered.

"No, you all are a bunch of cheap knock-offs; I'm the original!" the rude one argued.

A ghost to the right piped up. "Who cares about who looks like who? All I can think about is girls..."

Everyone was quiet for a moment after that.

"Er... Well, dudes," Fun Danny broke the silence, "It's been fun stickin' around here and all, but I think I'll be headin' out."

"And I, as well, should be going," Super Danny spoke, "You never know where danger lurks in this town."

Human Danny turned to face them. "What? No! You're not going anywhere!"

Tucker spoke up. "Uh... guys?"

Danny ignored him. "You guys can't just leave! We need to go back through the Ghost Catcher!"

"Er... 'Danny's?"

"Hey, dude, I get what you're sayin' and all... but honestly, I don't really care."

"And there's danger afoot!"

"You guys can't honestly be arguing with me about this, can you? WE'RE THE SAME PERSON!"

_"Danny!"_

_"What?!"_ Three heads whipped around.

"I hate to interrupt your arguing with yourself..." Tucker said, "but the other Danny's all left."

The three turned to face where the other Phantoms were. Emphasis on _were._

"They're _gone?"_ Fenton stammered, "But I- but how- b-but _What?!"_

"They all sorta just phased through the roof..."

He glared at Tucker. "_I know that!_ I mean, where'd they go?"

Tucker crossed his arms. "How should I know? Shouldn't you? They're you, after all!"

Super Danny spoke up, "Well, I'd love to stay and chat... But there are citizens to protect!" He flew up and phased through the roof dramatically.

"And I've got to, like, go crash a party," Fun Danny added. He saluted and floated up to the ceiling. "Dudes!"

"Wait! Get back here!" Danny yelled. It was in vain; Fun Danny had already disappeared. "You can't just- but I- but- AUGH!" He clutched his head.

"Great..._ just _great. My Dad's invention went haywire, and it split me in- in- however many of me there were, and now I'm- they're- all loose!"

"Calm down, Danny." Sam reassured, "It's not that bad."

"Not that bad, huh? Not that bad?!" Danny breathed heavily, "_They_ are all _ghosts_. I went through the Ghost Catcher, and thus don't _have_ ghost powers! How is that _'NOT THAT BAD'_?!"

Sam placed a hand on his shoulder. "Woah! Easy, there! We'll get this under control. We always handle these things."

He took in a deep breath. "Yeah... I guess you're right."

Sam ran up to the lab stairs. "Now c'mon! We have to catch those Dannys before they do anything stupid!"

Danny huffed. "I resent that!"

Sam rolled her eyes. "Whatever! Just grab a Fenton Thermos and lets go!"

Tucker and Danny ran to a lab shelf full of Thermoses. They each grabbed two, then turned to head out.

Tuck handed his extra to Sam; Danny grabbed his plum backpack and stuffed the second in it before throwing it over his shoulders.

"Alright, guys. Let's catch those Phantoms!"

* * *

**Funny how this whole mess started 'cause of the Box Ghost, huh?**

**I need Danny personalities! I don't have all ten yet... If you have any ideas, please share**

**And now for some DP trivia:**  
**The Nasty Burger was originally going to be the Tasty Burger. The creators were planning to have the 't' scratched out by vandals and replaced with an 'n', but eventually just made it an 'n' to begin with. Shocking, isn't it?**

**Remember to review :)**


	3. Explanations

**So I updated this later than I would have liked... but I have an excuse: limited internet access for the past week (for typing at least) and a tad bit of writers block. And school work. But, hey, I'm updating now at least!**

**I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed, followed, faved and whatnot. You guys are awesome! And full of great ideas; I've got (mostly) all of Danny's personalities now. I would have them all included in this chapter, but there were one or two that I haven't _quite_ decided what their theme will be and/or haven't figured out how to introduce them yet. For the most part, it's the latter. But you can still PM me ideas or leave 'em in a review, I may change my mind.**

* * *

Danny, Sam, and Tucker ran through the front door and stumbled outside. Blinking against the sudden harsh daylight, they saw-

"GHOOOOOOOST!"

-two familiar jumpsuited ghost hunters, Jack and Maddie Fenton, ecto-weapons aimed skyward. The Ghost Assault Vehicle was parked haphazardly in the middle of the street, skid marks leading at least 15 feet from the wheels.

Danny turned towards his dad. "Dad, what's-"

Another voice, a teenage boy by the sound of it, shouted from above. "Quit shooting at me, old man!"

The trio's heads turned up in unison at the sound. One of the escaped Phantoms was floating overhead, far out of reach.

"OLD MAN?! YOU'VE CROSSED THE LINE, GHOST PUNK!" Jack continued to shoot from his ecto-weapon.

"If I had to guess," Tucker announced, "that'd be Fun Danny."

"He's definately rude enough." Sam said under her breath.

Danny either ignored the comment or didn't hear it. He nodded, "Ok then, so where are-"

A cape wearing Phantom became visible in front of Fun Danny. "Just what do you think you're doing?" he shouted, "You're provoking them!"

Jack's eyes widened, lowering his weapon unconsciously. "What? There's two of them?"

Maddie blinked. "Phantom can duplicate?"

Danny scrunched his eyebrows. "How'd he get a bedsheet so fast?"

The ghosts ignored the confusion down below. Fun Danny scoffed. "Dude, he was shooting at me! For just floating! Is that, like, a crime?"

Super Danny crossed his arms, glaring. "Well, then, you should have stayed invisible. And you should have known they'd react like that!"

"Hey, don't lecture me!" Fun Danny rolled his eyes. "That is so not cool. What are you, my dad?"

"No, he is!" Super Danny whispered harshly and pointed at Jack Fenton. "So do you really think it's ok to call him 'old man'?!"

Jack, meanwhile, was staring at the scene above curiously. "I don't get it. What are they doing up there?"

Maddie ran up to her husband and squeezed his shoulder. "Jack, look! There's more of them!"

She pointed towards the girl-crazed Phantom as he floated by lazily on his stomach, eyes half-lidded. He sighed dreamily. Another equally tired specter followed, though his eyes were completely closed. He shifted his position to curl up in his sleep and unconsciously lifted a thumb into his mouth.

Tucker slapped a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing violently. He spoke a muffled "You suck your thumb?"

Danny shook his head violently, blushing. "No I don't!"

A Phantom with a Cheshire grin painted on his face flew up to two phantoms; Fun Danny with his hands behind his head and a cocky expression; and Super Danny, red in the face from yelling. Just as he lifted a finger to make another point, the smiling phantom shouted, "Hiya guys!"

They both whipped their heads around to him. He just floated there, smiling still, and they just stared.

"Erm... hi." Super Danny broke the silence with an awkward smile of his own. Fun Danny raised an eyebrow. "Look," he said, "we were kinda having a discussion here, so if you don't mind-"

"Oh, okay. Bye!" he said quickly, smile wavering for just a moment before he dissapeared.

Super and Fun Danny exchanged a glance. "Weird..." they said in unison.

Meanwhile, Jack just stared at the ghosts. A look of confusion adorned his face, as though he was trying to figure out a complex equation.

"I don't get it." he wondered aloud, "Where are all these ghost kids coming from?"

Two more Phantoms met up in air. The first, hugging himself fiercely, cautiously asked, "Who're they? A-are they trying to hurt us?"

"Ha! 'Old man'... classic." The second Phantom faked wiping a tear. He seemed to be enjoying himself much more than the other. "Oh, you don't have to worry about them. Well, not the orange one, at least. He couldn't hit the bright side of a barn!" He broke into a fit of laughter.

"Oh..." The scared Phantom dropped his arms, now smiling. "Ha! That was pretty funny."

"Thank you, thank you." He took a floating bow. "I try."

Yet another ghost manifested himself in front of the two conversing Dannys. "Boo!"

"Gah!" the easily scared Phantom got back into a mid air fetal position. The pranking Phantom had become visible right in front of them.

"Ha! You should've seen the look on your-" He was cut off as an ecto-blast wizzed past his ear, barely missing his ear by millimeters. Down below, Jack recovered from his shock enough to shoot.

Prankster Danny glared at Jack before a mischevious smile appeared on his face. He reached a hand into a pocket in his hazmat suit, took out a sticky green blob, and chucked it in Jack's face, where it burst on contact.

"Dad!" Danny ran from the doorstep to his father and tried to pull the goo off his face. Maddie scowled through her googles and aimed a few shots of her own.

Up above, Prankster was laughing his head off.

Funny Danny crossed his arms. "Not cool, man. And where'd you even get that?"

He stopped laughing. "Found it." He replied cooly. Just then, an ecto-shot hit him in the small of his back. Yelping, he took off in a random direction away from Fenton works.

"Wimp." Funny Danny muttered and turned toward the scared Phantom. "Hey, kid... He's gone now, he can't scare you. C'mon, lets get out of here." He glanced down cautiously. "The ghost hunters might just get a lucky shot in." he cracked a smile.

"Wait! Can I.. um... c-come with you?" he asked hesitantly.

"Sure!" His smile widened, showing off white teeth. "Besides, I need someone to laugh at my jokes."

They flew off, leaving just the first two Phantoms, still in a heated argument.

"How can you lack so much responsibility?"

"How can you be such a stick in the mud?"

"You're so... you're so... Gah!" Super Danny clutched his head. "How can we be the same person?!"

"Your guess," Fun Danny huffed, "is as good as mine."

"Well, at least we can agree on one thing." Super Danny muttered.

"Lets make it two." Fun Danny stuck out his arm. "Promise to stay as far away from me as possible?"

Super Danny, without so much as a hint of hesitation, answered "Deal." They shook hands briefly.

"I'm outta here." Fun said. They split up in opposite directions.

Jack scratched his head at one of the oddest encounters with Phantom he'd ever witnessed. "That must have been almost ten ghost kids. How- how are there... Oh!"

A look of understanding dawned on his face. "Ten! There's got to be ten of them! Ha! Ten ghost boys!"

"Blast it." Maddie powered down her weapon and turned to Jack. "He- err, they got away!"

Jack had a goofy grin on his face. "But Maddie, did you see? There were seven or eight ghost kids. Just think; How can Phantom, who's never showed that he could duplicate before, suddenly make so many copies of himself?" Maddie's eyes widened in understanding at what he was getting at. "I'll tell you how- He stumbled on the Ghost Catcher 2.0, I'm sure of it!"

Danny paled at his dad's words. Tucker and Sam exchanged a worried glanced, then both hesitantly spoke up, "Um... the Ghost Catcher 2.0?"

"Oh, hey kids, didn't see you there." Jack replied, oblivious to the pair's anxious faces, "I was just telling Maddie about it yesterday- I improved the ghost catcher!" Their eyes widened at the comment, but he went on to explain, "You see kids, before, it separated ghosts from the object they were overshadowing. Well, that gave me an idea: why not separate the ghost itself? It'll make the little specters weaker, and easier to catch. A win win!

"And you've... tested it?" Sam said slowly.

"Oh, sure. A pathetic little blob-ghost. The invention separated the thing into ten versions of itself. They were all pretty mindless after that..." Jack looked thoughtful for a moment. "I had my doubts, but I never thought it'd work on a real ghost."

Maddie stepped in the conversation. "Oh, and don't forget their inherited personalities."

Danny, quiet until now, found his voice, "Th-the what?"

"Well, to put it in simple terms, each smaller tenth took on one key role of it's former self. Traits common in ghosts, like anger, and some not so common, like fear." Maddie explained, "They were brought up and exaggerated immensly, from what we could tell. It's still too early to tell what kind of long-term effects it could have..." she trailed off.

Jack nodded, "Yep, those Phantoms were definitely acting funny alright. He must've stumbled into the-" Jack gasped "THE LAB!"

Jack and Maddie practically threw themselves at the door and ran inside.

It was Tucker who broke the silence. "At least now we know what's happening."

"Oh, Great." Sam sighed, "We have to deal with a bunch of Dannys with mood swings!"

"Actually, it sounded like each Danny would develop only one personality-"

"Tucker, I hardly think-"

Danny stopped short Sam's retort. "Alright, it doesn't matter. The fact is, we need to round them up before they do something... I'll regret." he sighed. "Oh, joy."

"We could split up." Sam shared, "Cover more ground."

He looked out towards the cloudless sky where three of his halves- tenths- dissapeared. One of the three who pelted his dad in the face with ecto-goo. That one in particular that gave him a bad vibe, that he was a troublemaker, and that he needed to be caught ASAP.

"I'm going that way." he pointed in the general direction. Then an idea struck him. "One of us should go find Jazz. We'll need as much help as we can get."

"I'll go." Tucker offered.

"Thanks, Tuck." he tossed his backpack to Tucker. "She's in the library, I think. Give her this, she'll need this stuff more than me." he faced Sam. "What about you?"

She looked off in the distance, in the direction of the park. "I think I saw some go that way."

Secretly, Sam had a particular Danny to go after. She wasn't going to let that lover boy Phantom find Paulina, because she knew that was exactly where he was headed. And being a good friend, of course, she couldn't just let that Danny do something idiotic. Like, say, spill his secret to the shallow witch...

With that, the three teens split up.

* * *

**I feel I need to explain this since it hasn't been directly stated in the story, and I've been asked about it. Danny went through the GC and split in half, into Phantom and Fenton. His ghost half then split further into ten parts. For all intents and purposes in this story, Fenton is the whole-and-complete Danny we all know and love. I guess you could say that Fenton is 50% Danny and the ten others are 5% Danny... but that's complicated and makes my head hurt, even though I'm the one who came up with this story in the first place.**

**ANYWAY, I think that's everything for now. Except DP trivia!**

**Ever notice how Danny's eyebrows are always black, even in Phantom form? That's because the creators of the show decided Danny looked too old with white hair and eyebrows.**

**Please R&R**  
**-Chess**


	4. Sleepy and Valerie

Back in the lab, the atmosphere was quiet and still. Or so it seemed.

Phantom materialized in mid-air and dropped down to the cold basement floor. He had waited patiently for about ten minutes or so- he wanted to be sure those other... Phantoms were gone before he showed himself.

He wasn't quite whole, he knew that. Deep within his core, there was mostly emptiness where power should have been. It was split amongst him and the others, leaving very little for himself. The absence of power unnerved him. He wanted that power, _needed_ that power, and he'd find a way to get it back.

But for now, he had to conserve energy.

Phantom walked (as opposed to floating, which he certainly would have preferred) to a shelf full of ghostly inventions. Hopefully, there would be something there that could help him with his task.

"Mads, do you think any of them are still-"

He turned immediately and met the wide eyes of two ghost hunters in brightly colored suits. The orange one acted fast, stepping in front of the woman and grabbing a high tech soup container nearby.

"Don't move, ghost scum!" he shouted and waved the thermos in the air dramatically. Phantom looked at the device, not with fear but with mild curiosity.

The man uncapped its lid. A swirling blue vortex emanated from it for a moment before something large tumbled out of it.

"I am the Booooox Ghoooost!"

A distraction. Perfect. Phantom turned back towards the lab shelf lined with identical thermoses, while the couple were busy with this "Box Ghost". Phantom had a pretty good idea of how the containers worked now, thanks to the hunters, and it was just what he was looking for.

He grabbed one, turned intangible, and flew out of Fenton Works. Deciding to use up a bit of energy for flying, and with the ghost tech in hand, he already felt powerful. Now all he had to do was find the others. The ghost smiled maliciously and allowed his green eyes to flicker crimson momentarily.

Time for some ghost hunting.

* * *

Phantom awoke to harsh sunlight directly in his line of sight. He blinked, rubbed his eyes, and took in his surroundings. The world around him was azure everywhere, including above him. It took him a moment to digest that he was hovering, and that below him lay civilization.

He stretched, popping stiff muscles while descending towards earth. Through unfocused, sleep-deprived eyes, he saw the hazy outline of an oddly shaped sign next to a red roofed building. The Phantom flew up close to it and recognized the shape: it was a hamburger. Red neon letters spelled out a name.

"Nasty Burger," he read aloud. Some memory in the back of his mind was trying to surface, to tell him this place had some sort of significance to him. He ignored it. "Huh. Weird name for a restaurant."

He floated down to the pavement beside the burger joint. All around him, the streets were quiet. Oddly quiet for a Saturday morning. He shrugged it off, not giving it a second thought. From looking through the windows of the establishment, it too was empty and deserted, customers and staff alike.

"Maybe it's just early... yeah, that's probably it." Emerald eyes drooped yet again, and he shook himself. "Ugh, why am I so tired? I need -yawn- caffeine or somethin'" he slurred.

Something colorful in his peripheral vision caught his attention. He looked up, green gaze sliding to an advertisement on the walls of the NB.

_Try our New Super Sugar Strawberry Shakes _

_To Satisfy your Sweet-Tooth!_

He half-smiled as the solution to his problem presented itself. "Or sugar. Sugar works."

* * *

Valerie moved her arms in sweeping motions across the table with a wet cloth in hand.

Of all the days she had to be stuck with the morning shift, it had to be a Saturday. A clear, crisp, beautiful Saturday morning. And here she was, working an hour before the place opened to clean and sweep up.

Though as much as Valerie disliked her job in general, clean-up duty was a definite step-up from official Nasty Burger mascot. She had absolutely _loathed_ that position.

Shaking her head, she returned to the task at hand: wiping tables. Val finished up making the last booth clean- or as clean as it'd ever be, anyway. She dumped the wet rag into a water filled bucket and lifted it by the handle. The teen walked behind the counter, dropping the pale on top. Valerie mentally went over her checklist: She'd just finished up with the tables, already cleaned the counter, and... sweeping! Yeah, that was it. The last item on the agenda. Then she just had to work the cash register shift when the place actually _opened_...

After heading to the janitors closet, she picked out a splintery broom to sweep with. Val took heavy steps towards the front of the restaurant, back through the double doors, tilted her head up, and gasped.

"YOU!"

A ghost, Phantom to be exact, had his back facing her and was leaning over the table. His whole body tensed, but he didn't make a move to face her.

_What is he doing here?_ Val thought. Why did he think he could come waltzing in here, mocking her with his mere existence? It was bad enough she had to see his face all around the city, but _here_?_ That crosses the line!_

Phantom finally turned around, holding near his face an... empty plastic cup? His eyes locked with Valerie's before smiling sheepishly.

"Erm... hi there," a free hand reached up to the back of his neck. "Sorry, I didn't know anyone was here, and these were just lying around on the table, so..."

Valerie looked over his shoulder to see what he was talking about. About five or six identical cups were strewn across the table top.

"Hey! Those samples were for the customers! That has to come out of my paycheck!"

Phantom seemed genuinley confused. "Oh, I'm sorry. These were yours?" Then a cheery grin split his face. "Well, they were really good! I had, like, six of them!"

Now, Valerie may not have known a thing about a ghost's biology, but it didn't take a genius to figure out what happened when someone had too much sugar. Especially when said sugary treat came from the Nasty Burger. She and any other kid from Casper High knew from experience they were the pro's of overdoing it when it came to food.

She just had to get to the back of the restaurant, find her backpack of ghost hunting gear, and catch him before the sugar rush kicked in. Simple... right? _Easier said than done..._

Val took a good look at Phantom. He was tapping his foot rhythmically and twitching his fingers against his leg like he was typing out Morse Code. And, if it wasn't just a trick of the light, it looked as though he was glowing a little more than usual...

"Well, miss," he interrupted her thoughts, "I had fun here and all, but I should be going..."

"Wait!" Val shouted, "I mean, um... you should... stay here! Right here. And don't move till I get back!"

The girl ran through swinging doors heading towards her stuff. Later she'd have to remember to smack herself. Asking her arch nemesis to go ahead and stay in the same building as her? ...Not smart. But for now, her priority was to prevent a sugar high ghost boy from wrecking havok around the city.

_Ghost gear, ghost gear..._ she thought, eyes scanning between cabinets and sinks. _Where did I leave my backpack?_

Then she spotted it on the floor. Valerie quickly grabbed it, sprinting to the front of the fast food place, burst through the employee's entrance door yet again, and pulled out an ecto-gun at random.

"Oh hey, your ba- aaack!" Phantom's eyes widened. He lifted gloved hands in front of his chest protectively. "D-don't shoot!"

The words scarcely left his lips before Valerie did just that. Reflexes allowed him to jump out of the way, tumbling on the ground. He quickly hid behind a trash can.

"Okay look, lady, I don't know _what_ I did to insult you but..." Daring to peek his head around, Phantom saw Valerie charging her gun up for another blast. "Is violence really necessary?!"

"Yes. Yes, it is." She sent a glare his way filled with so much anger he gulped. He could tell by that look- she was _ticked_. "And don't go trying to pull that 'I'm sorry I ruined your life' crap again. Because believe it or not, I am _not_ an idiot!"

She fired another blast of ecto-energy at the ghostly teen, and before one could say "going ghost", Phantom fazed through the building and hightailed out of there.

* * *

**Again, later than I would have liked. I was being a bit of a perfectionist with this chapter, and I've been busy with school work the past week or two. Sorry 'bout that. Also, I don't know for sure when I'll next be able to update- busy time of year, and all ;)**

**Hmm... the 'Evil Danny' scene would have made an excellent cliffie last chapter. But alas, it was not quite finished then. Oh well, I'll just have to plan for another cliffie soon!**

**Thanks to:**

**Reid Phantom  
Bubbles****  
writers-block-Bgone  
ShadowedFang  
****princessbinas**

**for your ideas. They helped me out with the story's plot a bunch! ****Not that I didn't appreciate everyone else's reviews. They all made me feel warm inside :)**

**Trivia:**

**"Bitter Reunions" is the only episode of DP that doesn't have Sam or Tucker in it at all. Gasp!**

**Happy holidays!**

**-Chess**


	5. Know-It-All and Jazz

**AN: I'm sorry this took so long to write! I've had a very, very busy winter break. When you're assigned two projects and a packet on **_The Odyssey_** over break, all for the same language arts class that you'd rather **_not_** fail when you're already getting a C grade, your priorities tend to be elsewhere **-_-

**I hope you all had a Happy New Year! Thanks for the reviews! And sorry if I didn't reply to yours, I think I may have missed one or two.**

**Wait, why are you still reading the Author's Note? Read the next chapter already! C'mon, you know you want to!**

* * *

Tucker was strolling quickly, a pace somewhere between a fast walk and a slow run. He would have jogged or ran, even, but Tucker Foley was not exactly known for his outstanding achievements in P.E. That, and he had to lug around a two-ton purple backpack on the way.

"What is _in_ this thing?" the techno geek asked to an empty street corner. He dropped the backpack on the sidewalk and paused to catch his breath. "I mean, I know he's got super strength and all, but does he have to pack it so full?"

Tuck bent down to unzip the pack and flipped it open. Textbooks were inside. At closer inspection, he could see various Fenton inventions lying underneath. He sifted through the gadgets.

"Fenton Thermos, Fenton lipstick, Ghost Gabber... Boo-merang? Huh, I was wondering where that went. Uh, lets see here... Fenton Finder?" He pulled out the dented metal tracking device, bringing it up close to his face to examine. The green tinted screen was dark, but otherwise looked functional. Tucker thought for a moment.

He flipped the switch.

"TWO GHOSTS DETECTED."

"Gah!" he yelped and fell back on the sidewalk.

Tucker stood and wiped dust off his pants. "Well, at least it works," he said sourly. The machine beeped in his hand, drawing his attention to it. Two blips glowed on the monitor. Two ghosts.

Two ghosts.

One was headed straight towards him.

He had just enough time to look up and see a black and white blur flying at breakneck speeds, right where he was standing.

Just feet away from crashing into Tuck, Danny Phantom's wide green eyes saw him. He stopped so abruptly mid-flight that it would have been physically impossible for a human.

Tucker stood there in shock, mouth agape.

The ghost ignored his speechlessness, grabbed a hold of the techno geek's shoulders and yelled, "You've gotta help me! There's some crazy red chick after me!"

Tucker blinked. "Who?"

Phantom looked from side to side before looking Tuck straight in the eyes. "Please! You- I- I mean, you were in the lab- with the others, I mean, and I thought maybe you'd help me, and, I mean, I was just so_ tired!_ And I didn't know the drinks were hers, I was just trying to wake up a bit, but then she got some weapons out of _nowhere_, and- and-"

"Dude! Just calm down, okay?" Tucker shoved Phantom lightly to let go of his arms. "Now say it a little slower, I couldn't understand a word you said."

Phantom closed his wide eyes and took a deep breath. "I was in this restaurant, and-"

"Where'd you go, ghost punk?"

"-HIDE ME!"

His eyes shot open again and Phantom hid haphazardly behind Tucker. It was no use, though; his white hair and glowing aura were still clearly visible.

"The girl in red is back!" He shouted and pointed towards the sky.

Tucker looked up and saw what he meant. The Red Huntress was scanning the area high atop her hover board. And by the looks of it, that wasn't just a squirt gun she was holding...

"Turn invisible!" He whispered to the Phantom.

"...I can do that?"

"YES!"

"Um... ho- how do I-"

"Stay away from him!" Valerie yelled. She started speeding towards them, ecto gun at the ready.

_Uh oh._

"How do I do it?" Phantom whispered loudly. He clung to Tucker's shoulders as though his afterlife depended on it. Tucker was frozen in place.

"HOW?!"

Tuck shook his head, "I- I don't know, you just think about it!" he turned to the Phantom, "Look, there's no time! Get out of here!"

Phantom started backing away slowly. He looked from Tucker to Valerie and back again. Then he shut his eyes tight in concentration. Suddenly the ghost was gone, replaced with thin air and an empty sidewalk.

Tucker let out a breath he hadn't realize he was holding.

"You!" Valerie's shout from behind got his attention. "Where's Phantom? Did he hurt you? Are you okay?"

He turned around and answered a bit awkwardly, "The... Red Huntress! Boy, am I glad to see you!" He forced a smile.

Valerie didn't seem to notice his slip-up, too intent on the ghost that escaped. "Did you see where he went?"

"Oh...Danny Phantom, you mean? He, um, flew out of here as soon as he saw you. Yeah! You scared him good!"Tucker internally winced. He really needed to better his acting skills.

Valerie's face was hidden behind her visor, but he could imagine the surprise on her face. "...I did?"

"Yeah! Totally! He was going on and on about how doomed he was because you found him. He thought he was a goner!" _Which actually isn't that far from the truth..._

Tucker could practically hear the smile in her voice. "Oh really? Well don't worry, Danny Phantom won't terrorize this city for much longer. Because this huntress is on the job!" She hovered a few feet above him and went off in the general direction Phantom disappeared to.

"Phew. Glad that's over with. Now..." He reached for the purple backpack on the ground. Which... wasn't there anymore. "Huh?"

The Fenton Finder that he'd forgotten about started beeping in his hand. "Ghost detected within a fifteen feet radius. You'd have to be some kind of moron not to notice the ghost directly in front of you." It stated in a monotone, feminine voice.

"Hey! I'm not a moron!" He scowled at the machine. The monitor had a single blip on the screen now, signaling there was supposedly a specter in front of him. He looked up.

Another very familiar white haired ghost wearing black and white Hazmat was floating a few inches off the ground. He didn't notice Tucker; he was too intent on the plum colored bag he was sifting through.

Tucker gasped. "Danny!"

Phantom stopped shuffling through the purple pack. Electric green eyes met Tucker before the ghost disappeared. The plum colored bag was still visible, however. It hovered in the air a bit before floating by itself down the street.

"Hey! Get back here!" Tucker shouted and ran after the haunted backpack.

* * *

Jazz sighed into her Physics book, clearly frustrated. She was in all honors classes, had straight A's, and even received scholarships from the top ivy league universities. So why was this so hard for her to figure out?

Arms crossed over the open book, she let her head fall and let out another audible sigh.

"Need any help, Jazz?"

"Ah!" The red head jumped out of her chair and nearly tripped. She scowled at her brother, placing her hands on her hips. "Danny! What have I told you about sneaking up on me like that?"

He tossed his old, faded purple backpack onto the desk, ignoring her question.

"And why are you in your ghost form? Danny, this is a public library. Just because we're in the back of the building and it's morning, doesn't mean-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, Jazz. Sheesh! Nobody saw me. This place is deserted, anyway. Even the librarian is on break."

Jazz sat back down in her chair. "Sorry, I just didn't expect for you to visit me here. You're usually pretty busy on weekends, with your 'job' and all..." She was genuinely curious now, "So what brings you here?"

Danny floated above the carpet behind her desk. "What? Can't a guy plan a surprise visit with his sister every now and again?" He looked down at the pile of books and papers on the table. "What're you workin' on?"

Jazz ran a hand through her hair and sighed loudly for the third time that day. "I decided to take an advanced Physics class, since science is a pretty big deal in our family, you know? And I thought, 'Hey, this will be easy! My parents are scientists; surely I can figure out simple Physics!' Besides, I've done just great in other science courses: Biology? Fine. Chemistry? I flew through that class. But Physics? It's just won't click!"

The Danny she knew and loved would have given her a supportive speech on how she was smart enough as it was, that her getting accepted to Yale was proof enough of her intelligence, that it didn't matter what grade she got in one lousy subject. Or perhaps a simple pat on the back and a hug would suffice. Danny, however, did not do either of those things.

"Oh, wow, Jazz. Physics? That's got to be the easiest subject there is!" And he went and _smirked_ at her.

Jazz scowled at her little brother. "Come on, Danny. I know it probably comes easier to you because you're so fascinated with astronomy, but could you show a little sensitivity? It's not like it's against the law, or anything." She finished sourly, eyes narrowed to slits.

Then, if the insult wasn't bad enough for her, he started to _laugh_. In her _face_. "What laws? Newton's laws? Or are you so far behind in your class that you haven't even figured out what they are yet?" He got out between guffaws.

Jazz stood up and got nose to nose with her brother. "You think that's_ funny_?" She jabbed a finger at his chest, "just because you're the town hero and you are smarter than your grades make you out to be, doesn't mean you have to be a jerk about it!" she practically screeched.

In a fit of anger, she snatched his backpack off the table, pulled out a Fenton Thermos, and aimed it at Danny. He barely had time to register what was happening before a blue vortex emanated from the machine, engulfing him in spectral energy.

"And that's what you get for being a selfish, know-it-all BRAT!" Jazz yelled to the Thermos and shook it for good measure.

"Jazz!" A familiar voice shouted. The seventeen-year-old girl whipped her head around to see-

"Tucker? What are you doing here?"

He walked to the desk and leaned on it. "It's... a long story," he panted, "have... you seen ...Danny?"

"Umm..." She looked around guiltily, "...yes?"

"Where is he? Where'd he go?"

Jazz gestured to the Thermos.

"You caught him?" Tucker raised his eyebrows.

"Well, he was ticking me off! I needed help with my Physics assignment, and instead of helping me like a good little brother, he decided to be a total jerk about it! And then he made fun of my intelligence and practically called me dumb! And on top of that, he- why are you smiling at me like that, Tucker?"

The techno-geek's grin only widened more. "Because we just captured our first Danny of the day."

Jazz gave him a look of confusion.

"Again, it's a long story. I'll, er, explain on the way out."

* * *

**Lesson learned: Don't insult Jazz's intelligence.**

******Note- I've decided Danny, Sam, and Tucker are fifteen around the time of this story while Jazz is seventeen. Also, the story takes place before season 3; this will be important later on. ****Any ideas as to why Sleepy Danny didn't recognize Tucker as well as Know-It-All Danny recognized Jazz?**

**Credit for a smart/stuck-up Danny goes to writers-block-Bgone. Though for some reason he didn't come off as smart and stuck up as I hoped he would... unless that's just me.**

**Trivia:**  
**We phans all know the DP theme song by heart. But did you know it wasn't the first? Check out the link below w/o spaces and replace the 'dot's with '.'s to watch the original storyboard concept of the theme song~**

www dot youtube dot com /watch?v= LNQHKKangls

**I have to warn you, though- it's different. And unfinished. But I thought it was pretty cool :)**

**Miss Chess appreciates feedback ^-^**


End file.
